Up Close with Coral and Culture in St. Croix

I don't know about you, but I get bored quickly at the beach. Don't get me wrong, I love the sun and sand, but I like to keep moving and learn a little bit while in the process. In St. Croix, I found two ways to do just that.

Snorkeling is something I've come to enjoy. It took a few tries, but once I figured out how to breath, it's something that I can't get enough of. A sort of living museum, if you will, that you get to float above and watch the shapes and colors move past. I could spend hours out in the water contemplating what I'm seeing. In St Croix, an excursion on Big Beard's sailing trip afforded me some downtime to enjoy the views, get a bit of beach time, and then an up-close discovery of the coral reef just off of Buck Island.

I spent my beach time out in the water. There wasn't much to see there, but it was nice to get to float about and familiarize myself with the gear. If you hadn't been snorkeling before, the crew spends this time with you teaching you the basics.

As we made our way out to the reef, the views were pretty incredible. I kept my eyes on the rolling hills in the distance and sailboats floating by in the breeze.

Once on the reef, we got a bit of snorkel instruction and the lay of the land. I chose to stay with the guide as we meandered our way through the reef. It was closer than I had ever been and required attention.

Therefore, my only underwater photo that didn't look like a blurry mess was this massive brain coral. Unlike the brilliant blue school of fish that I failed to capture with my camera, it wasn't going anywhere.

My underwater camera, really, has quickly become a glorified snorkel self-portrait device. The stylish vest is a requirement, as Buck Island Reef is a National Monument. If you get too tired from swimming and stop, you're so close to the coral that it's possible you might damage it, hence the stylish floating vest. After I snapped this shot, I left the group, who headed to the other side of the reef to try to catch a glimpse of a barracuda. Instead, I followed the underwater trail slowly back towards the boat and thought to myself "this is my kind of hiking."

If you're tired of the sun, the sand and even the water, why not spend some time in town? The Crucian Heritage and Nature Tourism or CHANT is a superb group in St. Croix seeking to redefine tourism by supporting historical sites, local artisans and tourism providers with a high level of authenticity. Their mission statement, alone, is inspiring.

I was treated to an early morning walk with Frandelle Gerard, Executive Director, as she lead my group on a Historical Walking Tour of Christiansted. Despite the rain showers and my lack of sleep, I found myself enthralled with the history of the place, it's European-style architecture. I quickly learned that St. Croix was colonized by Denmark, hence the European feel.

We started our tour at the historic Fort Christiansted where we learned about the history of St. Croix, including it's role in the slave trade.

We wandered the forts walls and saw where the men who staffed the fort would have slept, eaten and lived.

We also saw where insubordinate citizens were kept and peered inside of the tiny cells, which reminded me of monk's quarters I had seen in Umbria. We even went down into the prison, and as we hunched over in the tight space, I shuddered at the history lesson I was given. Imagining a mass of souls packed into this dark, cramped room is an image I still can't cast from my mind.

From the top of the fort, we reveled in the view and continued to be schooled on the town's history. I stopped for a moment as we were leaving to admire the patterned brickwork.

Frandelle remarked that the bricks themselves were Danish. Used on ships to weigh them down on the empty passage over, the bricks were left behind as the ships were filled with goods to take back to the Old Country.

After touring the fort, we took to the streets and were grateful for the arcaded walkways that sheltered us from the rainstorm. I admired the architecture, as I peered through the arches. I felt like I was walking through the pathways of a medieval Italian town, instead of an island in the Caribbean.

And I also made note of the many shops selling handmade artisan jewelry. Later we would stop by and meet the artists themselves, including Whealan of ib designs and Sonya, the inventor of the Crucian Hook Bracelet.

We also paused for a moment in the Lord God of Sabaoth Lutheran Church, built in the 18th century. I admired it's dark wood and again found my mind wandering to places I had visited abroad. I don't know why before this tour that I had naively chosen to ignore that St. Croix had a history or why it took standing in that church and realizing it was old to cement that fact. CHANT's tour not only got me out of the sand, but I began to think of St. Croix as much more than a sunny locale where I could travel to without a passport. It's history is long and complex, and while politically tied to America, it's European roots, well they're not so distant. I spent the rest of my trip with St. Croix's story, both past and present, at the forefront of my mind.